


Day 31: Ripe

by Magpie_Crow



Series: Inktober 2019 [31]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: I'm not sorry, Kid Fic, M/M, Mentions of Cancer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-31
Updated: 2019-10-31
Packaged: 2021-01-15 21:01:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21259589
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Magpie_Crow/pseuds/Magpie_Crow
Summary: Planting pumpkins will never be the same.





	Day 31: Ripe

**Author's Note:**

> Wow! I'm surprised I made it this far! I didn't think when I started that I'd make it all the way to day 31. Happy Halloween, folks!
> 
> We're also COMPLETELY IGNORING DADT in this fic. There is no DADT in this fic canon, even if it's set in 1994, lol.
> 
> TW Major character death, cancer mention
> 
> In which the author hits one of their own triggers. 
> 
> Check the notes at the end for a special announcement!

June 1st, 1994

“Daddy! Daddy! Look out!” 

“What for, little prince?”

Emile watched as his father’s wig got caught on an overhanging branch and pulled off his head.

“Oh! For that!” His father turned and glared at the wig-thief. “A prince has got to slay… Slay thieves!” He pulled out the tiny fake sword he carried around and made as if to duel the tree. 

“Daddy!” Emile was doubled over giggling. 

“You two are ridiculous.” Virgil, Emile’s other father, snatched the wig down from the tree and gently put it back on Roman’s head, covering his smooth skin. “I told you that you should use some of that wig glue today.”

“But I wanted to be able to take it off later! No-one should garden in a wig!”

“Fine. Let’s get what we came here for.”

Emile bounced around his fathers’ feet. “Pumpkin seeds!”

“That’s correct! Pumpkin seeds for our little prince! We’ve got to plant them before Papa gets deployed.” 

“I’m not leaving tomorrow, Ro.”

“Any day is too soon, my love.”

Emile gagged as his fathers kissed. Grown-ups were weird.

~~~~

July 7th, 1994 6:ish AM

“You remember what’s happening today, little prince?”

“Yup!” Emile pulled his backpack up onto his back. “Uncle Ree is picking me up from summer school because Daddy has to go see about his… Kee-mo?”

“Correct! What a smart little prince! Perhaps your Papa will be able to call you at Ree’s house this afternoon.”

“Yeah! Drive safe, Daddy!” The squealing of the school bus alerted Emile. “I gotta go!”

“Love you, princeling.”

“Love you more!” 

~~

5:30 PM

“You’ll be late? Okay, what do I do with the brat?”

Uncle Ree was on the phone, but it wasn’t with Papa so Emile didn’t care much. Uncle Ree was letting him watch _Animaniacs_ and eat dry Fruit Loops. It was fun spending the  
afternoon with Uncle Ree. 

“Okay, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do… Yeah, see you tonight. Bye.” Uncle Ree put the handset down. “Alrighty, squirt, finish that episode and then we’ve gotta scram.”

“Okeydoke! Why?”

“RoRo’s gonna be home late, so I need to get you home and suppered and in bed. School again tomorrow, or somethin’.” Remus paused. “Why’s he got you goin’ to summer school anyways?”

“B’cause Papa is in… Afghan? And Daddy has to work. So I go to school! I’m smarter every day!”

“Sure, kid. Eat your fruit loops.”

~~

7:45PM

“Is he in bed?”

“Duh. It’s like you don’t trust me.”

“With my kid? Sometimes not.”

“Ouch. How’d the appointment go?”

“It’s- It was fine, Remus. Thanks for your help today.”

“Sure. Anytime.”

~~

9:ishPM

Emile padded down the hall from the bathroom, walking slowly so he wouldn’t bother Daddy. He was a big boy, and could most definitely go potty by himself. Daddy’s door was open a crack, and Emile took a second to peek in, just to see if the coast was clear.

What he saw made him pause. Daddy wasn’t asleep in bed, curled up around a body pillow with Papa’s jacket on it. Daddy was sitting on the edge, with one light on, his face buried in his hands.

Emile pushed the door open and crept into the room. “Daddy? Did yous have a nightmare?”

Daddy looked up and smiled at him, but it wasn’t a happy smile. “Yeah, princeling. Just a nightmare.”

“What kind of nightmare?” Emile scrambled up onto the bed to sit next to his father, gearing up for a story.

“A quite terrifying beast. One the great Prince Roman must face and overcome to save the day!”

“What’s it called? Is it gonna laugh because you don’t have any hair?” 

Daddy chuckled. “No, baby, it’s the thing that took my hair away!”

“I thought your kee-mo was helping defeat that? Like Papa’s helping defeat bad guys?”

“It’s more complicated than that, baby.” 

Daddy looked sad, so Emile wrapped him in the biggest hug he could manage. “Tell me?”

“Well, princeling, the chemo was helping! It was a valiant knight! Unfortunately, the dark lord got a new helper, and that helper gave the doctors something called a prognosis.”

“A frog nose? Is that bad?”

“Something like that. And… It’s sometimes bad, little prince. That’s why Daddy had a bad dream.”

Emile snuggled closer to his father. “It’ll be okay, we’ll defeat it together. Won’t we, Daddy?”

“Yes, we will.”

~~~~

August 13th, 1994

“I’m sorry, Ree. Can Emile stay with you a few more days? I just need to rest.”

“Gonna show him a horror film.”

“Then you get to deal with the night terrors.”

“Fine.”

“Thank you. I don’t know what I’d do without you, bro.”

“Yeah, yeah. Go see if you can get ahold of your husband.”

“I have been.”

~~~~

September 9th, 1994

“Daddy! The pumpkins are so big!”

“Y-yeah, they are!” Daddy smiled at Emile from his wheely-chair. “Not too long before they’re all ripe and ready to carve!”

“Papa’s gonna be home for Hal’ween, right?”

“He’s trying, little prince.”

“We’ll all carve together? I don’t wanna cut myself!”

“Absolutely, little prince.” Daddy looked pale, paler than he had been.

“Les go inside, Daddy. You gotta see your kee-mo tomorrow, right?”

“Good memory, baby. Let’s go.”

~~~~

October 25th, 1994

“Daddy!” Emile ran into the house, dirt on his knees and backpack swinging from one grubby fist. “Daddy! The pumpkins! The pumpkins, theys-“  
His father was sprawled on the floor in the living room, eyes closed.

“Daddy? _Daddy?_ DADDY!”

~~~~~~

October 27th, 2019

“Dad! Hey dad! Lookit!” Thomas stumbled into the kitchen, holding a large pumpkin. “Oh, hi grandpa!”

“Hey, T. Whatcha got there?” Virgil and Emile were standing in the kitchen, nursing cups of tea. 

“The pumpkins we planted are all grown! Are we gonna take one to grandpa Roman this year?”

“Don’t we always, kiddo?” Emile fluffed his son’s hair. 

“Can I carve it, first? I want to try and carve _Aang_!”

Emile laughed. “Using my own weakness for cartoons against me? Fine, this once.”

“Yes! Love you!”

“Love you more.”

~~~~

October 31st, 2019

“Hey dad.” Emile stood in front of the solemn headstone, a pumpkin cradled in his arms. “The pumpkins are ripe.”

He put the gourd down gently, next to the one his son left there minutes before. “Love you, daddy.” Then he turned, and walked away.

ROMAN PICANI

LOVING HUSBAND, FATHER, SON

“LOVE YOU MORE”

1960-1994

**Author's Note:**

> Hope y'all enjoyed! I'm not going to apologize for that.
> 
> I set up a Discord server! <https://discord.gg/gtWgvQ4>  
Join me to talk about my writing and stuff!
> 
> As an announcement, there is a special contest going on in the server starting today, so make sure to check it out!
> 
> Find more on tumblr @we-are-fam-ily


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